It's as if the credit crunch never happened. Amid rumours of £50,000-a-year starting salaries, investment banks are back on campus this year and once again the top destination for student jobseekers.

A survey of final-year students at 30 sought-after universities, published on Wednesday, finds that among those already looking for jobs, investment banking is the most popular choice – with 8.5% applying.

The revival of interest in banking – after a sharp dip during the last two years' recruiting seasons – appears to have influenced students' views on pay.

The class of 2011's expectations for starting salaries have risen to an average of £22,600, the first increase for three years. Finalists at the London School of Economics, Imperial College London, Cambridge, Oxford, Warwick and University College London have the highest hopes on pay, anticipating earning at least £25,000 a year on graduation.

After five years in work, graduates expect to be earning an average of £39,900, and a sixth of this year's leavers believe their salary will be £100,000 or more by the age of 30.

The burden of debt is also heavier, according to the surveyby High Fliers Research.

Predicted student debt has risen by 4% to average £18,700, £800 more than 2010.

Martin Birchall, managing director of the market research company, said: "During 2008-09, applications for investment banking fell by a third. When we spoke to people in March, more people had applied for banking than any other sector.

"At least three banks are rumoured to be paying £50,000 starting salaries, and that's before any bonuses. All of the banks were back on campus with a vengeance in the last 12 months, promoting themselves very hard. Most of the best-known City names are recruiting at 2006-07 levels."

While investment banking is the most popular sector among early applicants, media, teaching and marketing are expected to emerge as the most popular sectors when students who defer applying until finishing their exams begin sending out their CVs.

The survey finds that finalists began job hunting earlier and made a third more applications than last year, taking the total to an all-time high of 343,000 in March, compared with 257,000 last year.

The results, based on face-to-face interviews with nearly 18,000 finalists, show 37% made early job applications, applying to employers at the beginning of their final year. This compares with 31% who applied early in 2009.

Fewer students have applied for graduate positions in the police and the armed forces, while the number keen to work for the government or elsewhere in the public sector has dropped by a fifth. The exception is the NHS, which is attracting greater interest this year.

The proportion of finalists expecting to enter the graduate job market this year has increased, with 40% saying they will either start a graduate job or look for work after university, compared with 36% in 2010 and 2009. A further 25% are planning to pursue postgraduate studies, 8% to take temporary or voluntary work, 13% to take time off or go travelling, while 14% of finalists are undecided.

Students at four London colleges including Imperial and LSE, Bath, Loughborough, Aston, and Sheffield universities expected to have the largest debts in 2011, averaging between £20,000 and £30,000 on graduation. The lowest predicted student debts were at Strathclyde and Glasgow, where many undergraduates live at home. Scottish students, and EU students in Scotland, do not have to pay tuition fees.

High Fliers Research noted that increasing numbers of employers – particularly in banking, consulting and engineering – frustrated by the relatively small number of British students able to speak foreign languages, are turning to European universities to recruit graduates who can offer languages in addition to other academic achievements.

The universities minister David Willetts said: "I am pleased to see indications of increasing confidence in the graduate employment market … Graduates are rising to the challenge of a difficult market with a record number making early job applications. A degree remains a good investment and is one of the best pathways to achieving a good job and rewarding career.

"Improving information for prospective students about what they can expect at university and from their degrees is a key part of our future plans for higher education. It is also important for students to develop the wider skills that are valued by employers, and to think about boosting these skills while they study."